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COURSE CARE

It Can Change At The Drop Of A Hat
February 27, 2015

It Can Change At The Drop Of A Hat

By Keith Happ, Senior Agronomist
October 23, 2009

ANNOUNCEMENT - ANNOUNCEMENT - ANNOUNCEMENT - ANNOUNCEMENT

There will be no fee increase in the USGA Green Section Turf Advisory Service visits for 2010.

Half-day visits $2,300

Full-day visits $3,100

A $500 discount is offered for payments received by May 15th

As always, visits can be scheduled anytime throughout the year. If you take advantage of our early payment discount, we can schedule visits more efficiently and you can save some money.

Most of the Mid-Atlantic Region recently experienced an abrupt weather change. Cold, wet conditions have dominated, resulting in snow in the north and heavy precipitation throughout the remainder of the region. There is still plenty of fall left for golfers to enjoy the course and for the turf mangers to prepare for winter. However, with this sudden change the leaves will fall rapidly and the cleanup process will dominate course maintenance activities.

A trend we see is more turf managers are being asked to shift fall aeration to later in the year. Aeration is important and there are specific windows of opportunity to gain maximum agronomic and economic benefit from the treatment. The later in the season that the treatment is performed, the more the weather can complicate the process and diminish returns while slowing recovery from the work.

This is particularly true when the leaves are falling and the soils are saturated. With saturated soils it is much more difficult to pull a core from the profile. The process is further complicated when fairways are leaf covered. It is very difficult to shatter cores and reincorporate the soil back into the surface when it is covered with leaves. Many turf managers have shifted to less effective solid tine or slicing tine treatments in order to get air into the profile, manage compaction problems, and prepare for winter. If you or your committees have questions about the available options for fairway management, give us a call. There are many factors that enter into determining preparation strategies that will work best at your facility.

Fall is the time to evaluate what worked and what did not work well this past season. Soon the conference season will be upon us and there will be many opportunities to chat with colleagues, review research results, and evaluate new technologies. Never stop trying to learn or asking questions. Turfgrass management is a dynamic industry and there will always be emerging technologies. Take the time to attend those education sessions that are of interest. There may be that one new idea that will make a difference in your operation next season. Deferring educational opportunities makes for a less efficient golf course maintenance operation.

Remember, the Mid-Atlantic Region agronomists are part of
your agronomic support team. If you have a question or
concern, give us a call or send an e-mail. Stan Zontek (
szontek@usga.org
) or Darin Bevard (
dbevard@usga.org
) at 610-558-9066 or Keith Happ (
khapp@usga.org
) at 412-341-5922.